3D rendering of the METIS instrument inside the ELT enclosure

The Mid-infrared ELT Imager and Spectrograph (METIS) is a multi-tool instrument that will observe in mid-infrared light once installed on ESO’s Extremely Large Telescope (ELT). The collected light can be directed either to a high-contrast camera, which will create sharper infrared images than ever before, or a high-resolution spectrograph, which separates the light into the colours it is made up of, allowing scientists to learn the chemical composition and motion of astronomical objects. The instrument also includes its own adaptive optics sensor to correct for the blurring effects of the Earth’s atmosphere. This artist’s 3D view, based on an engineering rendering, shows METIS (centre right) in the ELT instrument platform together with other telescope instruments and three people shown for scale. The giant M1 mirror of the telescope is seen in the background.